Visiting the scenic, poverty-stricken town of Cateel is one of those promises I have failed to keep. Today the town is flattened and I have no idea how it could ever be rebuilt.
The promise to visit Cateel I made to Sr. Virgeen, a Maryknoll nun who worked tirelessly for decades building the St. James parish school in that town. We have a relationship that goes back over half a century.
Sr. Virgeen patiently chased after me every time I sprung from my seat and ran out of my kindergarten class at St. James Academy in Malabon. I do not recall exactly why I did that. Perhaps I could not take sitting still in close proximity to others for long periods, a disposition that still afflicts me to this day.
Or, perhaps, it was great fear for the nuns: large, pale-faced and stern, they were awesome. The Maryknoll sisters then also wore the strangest garb, with pointed headgears, emphasizing their towering presence over us children.
The nuns, I found out later, were warm, friendly and dedicated to their missionary work. Sr. Virgeen, in particular, became a close family friend. My late mother was always happy when she visited, often to discuss ways we could support her missions. She was there to comfort us when my mother passed away. She kept up with our large brood and followed my writing.
In high school, they supported my work as a catechist in the public schools. When I was detained after martial rule was imposed, the nuns sent me a copy of a Maryknoll publication called The Radical Bible. After I fractured a knee documenting the struggle of Kalinga leader Macliing Dulag and his village, I found shelter in the Maryknoll facility in Baguio.
I owe a lot to Sr. Maria del Rey, who opened the great world of English literature to our young minds and patiently helped me discipline my prose. She encouraged us to produce a school paper, which I edited. The first money I made from writing was a grand sum of $5 for a piece on Pope Paul VI’s visit submitted to the Religious News Service.
Many years ago, the nuns gave up Maryknoll College and St. James Academy to concentrate on missionary work. Sr. Virgeen and her band set up shop in Cateel. It was a place with very little means and, I am sure, the sisters brought with them a large dose of hope.
Many times, I found Sr. Virgeen walking the streets of Davao City trying to sell the handicrafts produced by the women of Cateel. Although advanced in age, she was always tireless and unrelenting.
This great nun has retired to the Maryknoll home in New York. Last month, she was in town and my siblings arranged a small luncheon for her. Unfortunately, my toxic schedules caused me to miss that reunion, something I now greatly regret.
Finally, I got to see what the Maryknoll sisters managed to build in Cateel — but it was on television footage showing the devastation in that town. Neither the impressive church nor the bright yellow-painted school was spared. It was a heart-breaking sight, making this otherwise distant tragedy a personal pain.
I am sure the tough nuns of Maryknoll will not rest until they have rebuilt that church and that school. I am equally sure the generous alumni of both Maryknoll College and St. James Academy will be ready to help.
Logistics
Adding to the misery of the victims of Typhoon Pablo is our chronically weak logistics system. Many villages were reached by rescuers many days after the calamity. With few vessels, our military could not deliver relief goods as quickly as they should. With the traffic situation, donors in the city have difficulty bringing their donations to collection centers.
Fortunately, some of our logistics and telecom conglomerates have swung into action. Airline companies are helping ferry supplies to the disaster area. The Tulong Kapatid MVP Group Telethon was able to raise over P100 million over a 24-hour period, including generous donations from corporate partners and subsidiaries. Remarkably, the effort raised over half-a-million from small donors over SMS.
The Aboitiz Group, whose activities range from logistics to merchant marine to power and banking, joined the relief and rehabilitation effort.
Led by the Aboitiz Foundation, the group has already delivered over P5.5 million worth of assistance to an estimated 10,000 families. In addition, teams from Aboitiz-owned Davao Light and Power Co. are on the ground, assisting the Davao Oriental Electric Cooperative in restoring services to the devastated areas. Another subsidiary, Visayan Electric Company (VECO) deployed teams of linemen to help the Surigao del Sur Electric Cooperative to help restore their lines.
This is a classic case of a large conglomerate orchestrating its assets and organization to meet its social responsibilities. From a coordination center based in Cebu, the Group organized relief operations over a wide area from Negros Oriental to Bukidnon to the badly-hit ComVal area. Using its strategic partnership with Meteomedia of Switzerland, the Group launched a broad disaster risk management initiative covering the vulnerable areas.
Those who wish to contribute to the relief effort may send donations to the Aboitiz Foundation using the following accounts: Union Bank of the Philippines, 10026-1070944 or City Savings Bank, 200-200331301.
The government-led effort, large flows of assistance from foreign governments notwithstanding, will be insufficient given the scale of the calamity. Corporations need to supplement the national effort with their logistical capacities.
I offer this space to help disseminate information about where and how ordinary citizens could assist.